Credit cards are well known and are commonly used for purchasing items. A problem associated with credit cards is that they may be easily lost or stolen. A lost or stolen credit card may then be used to purchase items that the rightful owner of the credit card does not intend. This leads to millions of dollars of unauthorized purchases being transacted every year, with the cost being paid by the credit card company and/or the credit card owner.
Electronic devices such as cellular telephones, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) and laptop computers are well known and are commonly used for all sorts of activities by a large number of people. A problem associated with these electronic devices is that they may be easily lost or stolen. A lost or stolen cell phone can be used to make calls and accumulate large phone bills. A lost PDA can result in the loss of private or crucial personal and business information. The loss of a laptop computer can result in confidential data being disclosed.